Hikaru Sulu will be revealed as gay in Star Trek: Beyond

Hikaru Sulu, who is played by John Cho in the Star Trek reboot franchise, will revealed as a gay character in the upcoming Star Trek: Beyond.

Cho shared this information while promoting the film in Sydney, Australia. “I liked the approach, which was not to make a big thing out of it, which is where I hope we are going as a species, to not politicize one’s personal orientations,” Cho told Herald Sun.

Writer Simon Pegg and director Justin Lin decided to make Mr. Sulu gay as a salute to actor George Takei, who originally played the character and has become one of the most inspiring members of the LGBT community. Sulu’s sexual orientation won’t be a major plot point in the film, but he will have a daughter with a same sex partner.

Sulu will notably be the first openly gay character in the whole Star Trek series, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Star Trek isn’t the only franchise pushing for more LGBT characters in major blockbusters. J.J. Abrams previously stated that Star Wars will have gay characters in future installments. Meanwhile, fans have been tweeting to give Captain America a boyfriend in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and to give Elsa a girlfriend in Frozen 2.

Star Trek: Beyond hits theaters on July 22.